Scott 857a sold for 5% of previous sales: $20 vs $400

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Another Haitian philatelic item gets back to planet Earth after experiencing some astronomical sale prices. The laws of supply and demand do eventually take hold over speculation or collectors irrational behavior. Scott 857a had some amazing sales in 2011 and 2012. Several online souvenir sheets sold between $250 and $400 ! This recent sale which had bids from at least 3 bidders saw the souvenir sheet sell at $20.56 (click on price for auction page), only an 8% to 5% value of the 2012 prices.

The common mistake that some collectors make is that because they see that a price in a catalogue has an “–”, they think the item is rare or has a high price. They should read the preface of the Scott catalogue and other catalogues, where it states that it only means that not enough information is available to give a decent or reliable quote for the item. Again, a stamp not being quoted has nothing to do with actual rarity.

Maybe this latest sale will make buyers think twice before paying or offering high prices for common items.